Hospital worker held in alleged sex assault of patient

John Pirro

Updated 10:01 pm, Thursday, September 5, 2013

A Danbury Hospital employee has been charged with sexually assaulting a patient in June, police said.
Michael Wilmot, 47, was arrested after a lengthy investigation and charged with two counts of first-degree sexual assault, according to a police.Wilmot was in custody on $50,000 bail on Thursday, Sept. 5, 2013.
Photo: Danbury Police Department

Michael Wilmot of Waterbury, a patient care technician, allegedly performed a sex act on the victim while she was under the influence of a powerful narcotic pain medication, according to an arrest warrant affidavit made public after he was arraigned in state Superior Court on Thursday morning.

Wilmot, who has worked at the hospital for nine years, was charged with two counts of first-degree sexual assault and released on $50,000 bond pending another court appearance on Sept. 19. He was suspended after his arrest, hospital spokeswoman Andrea Rynn said.

"Since this matter involves an active legal matter, we cannot comment in detail," Rynn said. "We want to reassure the public that the well-being and security of our patients is our top priority, and that we are fully committed to providing a safe environment for their care."

The duties of patient care technicians are similar to those of a nurses aide. They work with doctors, nurses and other hospital staff to provide direct care to patients.

Wilmot, married and the father of five, was assigned to care for the victim after she was brought to the emergency room on the evening of June 11, police said. The victim said that after she was taken to her room and given Dilaudid by a nurse, "Michael" came into her room several times, and began flirting her and telling her she was beautiful.

The victim, who is married, said she was embarrassed by Wilmot's attention, and asked the nurse to keep him out of the room because he was being "too friendly," according to the affidavit. The nurse turned off the lights and pulled a curtain across the doorway, she told police.

But a short time later, Wilmot came in again and sat her up so he could kiss her, she told Special Victims Unit detectives.

Later, the victim said, she woke up to find her underwear down and Wilmot performing a sex act. He continued even after she told him to stop, according to the affidavit.

After being discharged the next morning, the victim and her husband reported the incident to police, and she was taken to Putnam Hospital Center in Carmel, N.Y., where medical personnel performed a sexual assault examination. Evidence from the examination is awaiting testing at the state forensic laboratory, police said.

Wilmot denied the allegations when he was interviewed on June 13, police said, but eventually acknowledged kissing the victim after she first kissed him, he said, and that he had touched the woman's breast with the palm of his hand. He said the woman had placed his hand on another intimate place, police said.